This is SO NOT the Afterlife
by LightningNinja20
Summary: (Inspired by the Bionicle story 'D***, Now What') She was supposed to be dead. She was supposed to be in a coffin, unmoving. Dead. Or, at the very least, in the hospital with major burns and a few broken bones 'cause that pine couldn'tve been light. So why was she in a stone hut? And why was there a LAVA pool and spewing volcano OUTSIDE HER HOUSE! On hiatus.
1. A Meeting With Death

"Alright class, settle down please—settle down!" Mr. Baku said, raising his voice. The large group of around 150 middle schoolers quickly quieted. "Thank you. Now, as you can see, we're at the Rennisance Festival. However, this does not mean you are free to run off on your own. You must stay with a chaperone and your group at all times! Should you get separated, remember to find your way back here as this is where we will meet up at two o' clock. Understood?" Every theatre student present nodded, as did the 18 chaperones that accompanied them. Mr. Baku smiled. "Now, go have fun—"

Before he could finish that sentence, however, a large boom sounded from behind them, and trees started falling from the glades around them. Screams resonated throughout the park entrance as people dodged falling pines, and I looked around in fright, clutching Riri's hand. Hanna yelled as she pulled Kasondora out of the way of a falling tree. Fire started spreading through the trees around us, and I pulled Riri and Yorudan towards the center of the entrance, near the map booth.

"Stay here! I'll grab the others!" Yorudan shouted, running back to Hanna and Kasondora. I scanned the park entrance, looking for my other friends. Yorudan was bringing Hanna and Kasondora to our group, Mr. Debiddo was helping some other boys, and. . .

Zoi!

"Zoi! Behind you!" I shouted, running for her. The brunette turned around just in time to see a flaming tree start to collapse towards her, and I shoved her out of the way as a large crack was heard. Tears welled in my eyes and the tree toppled towards me, and I whimpered. This was it, wasn't it? I would die.

 _Move, idiot, move!_ I screamed at myself, shaking. _Run!_ The tree came right up to my face—

" _ERIZE_!!"

 _Crash!_

 **End of Chapter 1**

 **Notes:**

I know, it was crappy and short for a chapter. How many words is this? I keep losing count. Meh. I'll look when this is published. Enjoy!


	2. Is that a VOLCANO!

I whimpered, pain wracking my nerves. It was noisy, and everything hurt. Why did everything hurt? Why did it hurt?

Voices sounded around me, and my ears strained to pick up what they were saying. I caught snippets of words and phrases, but the ringing in my ears messed with my hearing.

". . . Why did. . . watch his ba. . ."

"I t. . . the Ma. . .s got hi. . ."

". . . Ahu. . . ke u. . ."

". . . Ahu. . . ahu. . . ahu!"

My eyes shot open, before a wave of nausea slammed into me and I fell over, barfing up whatever was in my stomach. God, why does everything hurt? Everything hurts!

As I emptied the last of my stomach, I whimpered, tears starting to roll down my cheeks. It hurt, it hurts so much! Make it stop, make it stop!

"Tahu!" A voice shouts, and a hand rubs my back. "It's going to be okay, just hold tight." I choke a sob, clutching my stomach.

"Hurts. . ." I croak out, dizzy. "It hurts. . ."

"I know, I know, we'll get you to a healer, alright?" The same voice says, patting me on the back. "You'll be okay, brother, just hang on!" As my vision blackens, something wraps around my body and pickes me up. "It'll be okay, Tahu." Tahu? Why is it. . . calling me Tahu?

I'm not. . . I'm not Tahu. . .

Gali paced outside Tahu's hut, wringing her hands. Pohatu watched as she walked back and forth, before placing a hand on her shoulder.

"Gali, calm down. You're making me nervous, and trust me you don't want to see an already nervous Stone Toa get even more nervous." He said, stopping her in her tracks. "He'll be fine. He'll pull through." The Water Toa sighed.

"I know, I'm just scared! He was vomiting _blood_!" She exclaimed, beginning to pace again. "What if my healing wasn't enough? What if we were too late? What if—"

"Gali, calm it!" Pohatu shouted, grabbing her by the shoulders. "He'll be fine! He's strong, I _know_ he'll survive! He's too stubborn to die anyway!" She took a deep breath, shuddering.

"Right. Tahu's strong, he'll be fine." She muttered, leaning against the wall. "The healing will work. It has to." Just then, the door opened, revealing Turaga Vakama.

"Toa Gali, Toa Pohatu," He said, walking out. "He's awake."

". . . I'll get the others, okay?" Turaga Vakama said, taking his hand off my back. My head was against my knees, and I was silently sobbing.

 _How could I have let that happen?_ I thought, sniffling. _Why didn't I run? Why was I frozen? Why couldn't I run?!_ As the door closed, I lamented on my current situation. Apparently, the whole incident earlier was real. _Gali_ was real. As much as I would've enjoyed it, it just put a heavier burden on my shoulders;

I was Tahu Mata.

 _I'm scared._ I thought, bursting into more tears. _I'm-I'm not ready for this! I don't want to fight! I don't want to die again! I'm scared!_ The sound of a door opening caught my attention, and out of the corner of my eye I saw a blue hand on my shoulder.

"Are you okay, brother?" She asked, blue light flashing from behind the grate of her mask. I whimpered, clutching my knees. "What's wrong?" I didn't answer her. She sighed, sitting down next to me and rubbing my back as I simply cried again, leaning against her. After a while, my eyelids grew heavy, and I stifled a yawn.

Sleep would be nice right now. . .

 **(Skip to 14:25:13)**

I yawned, rolling over as my hand hit something hard, before flopping right on top of my 'huggy pillow'. I stared out the window expectantly, looking for the neighborhood vultures, when a volcano caught my eye—

Wait, WHAT?!?!

I shot up before jumping out of bed, or tried to as my foot hit the wall _pretty_ hard.

"Ow!"

Note to self: Tahu's bed is up right against the stone wall, not like mine which has a gap in between my pink and purple walls to make things more 'roomy'. Ouch.

"*yawn* Tahu? What. . ." A voice behind me said, and I turned to see Gali getting up. I smiled and wrapped my arms around her, and she froze. What'd I do?

Oh.

OH.

I quickly let go and turned away, feeling stupid. I wasn't clingy Erize anymore, I had to act normal! Or rather, their sense of normal. Dang it!

"What was that—" I jumped as a horn suddenly blew, shouting accompanying it.

"Earthquake!" A guard shouted, and I dashed out, grabbing the flame-patterned sword by my bed and pulling Gali behind me. As the ground shook, I ducked under the table with Gali, ready for the roof to collapse at any moment.

 _Rumble. . ._

 _Rumble. . ._

 _Rumble. . ._

The chandelier fell.

I activated my Hau, only for the simple glass sculpture to crash on top of the table and shatter. Gali screamed as a bookcase thudded to the ground, and I shrieked as the table covering us collapsed, activating my Hau. When were there earthquakes?! We just defeated Makuta, what happens now?! Think, think you idiot!

BOHROK—

Crap.

 **End of Chapter 2**

 **Notes:**

Yay, here come the Beetle Bug Mr. Cleans! If you want to know, Erize is a character based off myself, and as you can see, is a Bionicle fangirl, wimp, crybaby, and hugger. Then again, she's a little kid from middle school, so her behavior is understandable. Sorry this took so long to write, see you next time!


	3. I’ve had MORE than enough

I'm _done_.

I am literally _done_ with this crap.

Here's what happened on my second day here; I go out for a walk, leave a note so nobody gets worried, and when I get back, I get a chew out from Turaga Vakama because apparently I never told anyone where I was going and the whole team panicked.

"But I _did_!" I protested, walking up the volcano. Turaga Vakama thumped his staff, making me flinch.

"Enough!" He shouted in my face. "This conversation is over!" As we walked to the volcano, I tried to remember what I did. Surely I left a note. What did I do. . . I woke up, yawned, wrote a note on some paper. . . yeah, I left a note! Why did he not see it?! It was on the table right there and it wasn't like I wrote it in Spanish or Vietnamese, I wrote it in clear English—

I paled.

. . . Did Matoran speak English?

 _Well, duh._ I told myself. _How else can I talk to them? I only know English and some semblance of the others. They kinda have to speak English._

". . . Job will be. . . Kraata—ARE YOU EVEN LISTENING TO ME?!" The Turaga shouted, making me jump.

"Sorry! I was thinking of something else!" I apologized, seeing a bunch of tiny squiggling robot. . . things. What were these again? I only paid attention to the main Rahi like Kikilano and Muaka and Ussal. Did the Matoran Universe have squishy worms?

"As I was _saying_ ," The Turaga continued, glaring at me. "Many of these Kraata are infecting the wild Rahi. Your job is to stop them. Come back to me when you're done—and watch your mask." As Vakama- _Turaga_ Vakama walked away, I looked at a Kraata that started to wiggle towards me, hissing, and backed up.

"Nope. Nope nope nope nope nope." I said, scrambling away. "Nice uhh. . . thingy. Please leave me alone." The kraata just hissed and slithered closer, along with the others in the cave. I drew my sword.

 _I'm not dealing with this._ I told myself. _If Vakama wants me to stop them, I'll squish 'em like the bugs they are._

I stepped forward to a Kraata before cutting it in half with my sword, blackish green blood oozing out. Holding back some vomit, I repeated the process, my Hau on just in case. I'll probably dump their corpses in the lava after, make sure nobody steps on or eats it by mistake.

Finishing off some more, I looked to two kraata nearby some lava. Good, they just made my job easier. All I have to do is knock them in and they're gone.

Gathering a small ball of fire in my hands, I hurled it at them. My aim was off and it hit the rock next to them, but its intended purpose was true and both Kraata jumped before falling into the molten rock. Sheathing my sword and dusting my hands off, I turned around and walked away.

"Note: I'm not doing this again. Ever." I stated, quickly taking off my mask to inspect it for infection. It was still its bright, shiny red, and I sighed. No more trouble for me. Walking away, I started singing to a depressing Japanese rock/pop song from an anime I liked.

". . . And it's been ripped at the seams~, this world will end in ruin~, and I'll lose all I love~" I sang, skipping slightly, when the whole entire cave shook. Screaming, I ran out, narrowly escaping before the entrance collapsed.

"Turaga Vakama didn't read my note, I had to clean up Kraata, and the cave nearly caved in on me. Great. The world simply hates me, doesn't it?" I muttered darkly, stomping away.

I'm _done_ with this.

 _Done._

 **(POV switch)**

Gali meditated by Ga-Wahi's cliffside, an orb of water in her hands. Kopaka walked up, taking a seat next to her.

"How's Tahu doing?" He asked, startling the crap out of Gali. She screamed, jumping up before falling backwards.

"Don't creep up on me like that!" She shouted at her brother. "I _hate_ it when you do that."

"You never answere my question. How's Tahu doing?" He asked again.

"He feels. . . off." She stated, fiddling with some water vapor. Kopaka stiffened, fist clenched. "He's surrounded by darkness, but. . . it's not like Makuta. He doesn't feel malicious. Tahu's aura's nice. . . but it feels. . . afraid. Like he's afraid of something. He's been acting weird lately too. When he first woke up, all he did was sob. Cried himself to sleep. The next day when he woke up, he hugged me. _Hugged_ me. It's weird, as if he's someone else—"

"Maybe he's still coping with his near-death." Kopaka cut her off unexpectedly. "And the aura thing probably has something to do with Makuta. Don't worry, watch as he's back to his old self in a few days." Gali smiled.

"I hope you're right—"

 _RUMBLE_

"Earthquake!" A Ga-Matoran shouted as the ground shook. Kopaka grabbed Gali and dragged her away from the cliffiside, just as part of it collapsed into the waters below. A few minutes later, the shaking stopped, and both Toa sighed in relief.

"I should probably get back to Ga-Koro. There might be damage done to the village." Gali excused herself, slipping out of her brother's grip before diving off and swimming away. Once his sister was out of earshot, Kopaka groaned, leaning against the tree with his face in his hands.

 _'—I froze, and she's dead. I froze, and she's dead. I failed, and she's dEaD i WAs sO hELpLeSs So wEak nOW ShE's dEaD sHE dIEd FoR mE AnD noW sHe'S dEaD I LeT hEr dIe sHE's dEaD—'_

"Shut up, shut up, shut up!" He groaned, clutching his mask. The voice faded away, and he sighed. "Who are you? Why can only _I_ hear you? What are you trying to say to me?"

"Forget it—"

 _'He keeps reminding me of her. Your brother. Of Erize.'_

 **End of Chapter 3**

 **A/N:**

 **I know the ending to Erize's Kraata situation sucked. I was planning, honestly, to have the lava she knocked the Kraata in be Energized Protodermis instead, and for her to get kidnapped by a Rahkshi. And who's the mystery griever ranting in Kopaka's head? I'll give you a hint; what happened to Erize and why? ;) Enjoy!**


	4. Get Your Head In The Game

**So sorry I haven't updated! I've had no ideas on what to do for this chapter, and coupled with school, that made it difficult to write. And when I got some done, the site** **decided to NOT save it. So now I have to start over again. But hey, I got it done, yay!**

 **Chapter 4: Get Your Head In The Game**

I yelped as Kopaka swung, swinging out with my flame-patterned sword. A quick tap to the head ensured me out, and I sighed. Kopaka frowned.

"What's with you? We had a draw last week, a close one if I remember correctly. Why are you so lacking in skill now?" He asked, sheathing his sword and shield. I fumbled with my sword, already exhausted from our fight. Unlike the previous Tahu, I did not have the fighting skill, nor the endurance he had.

"I don't know. Why do you care?" I retorted, finally giving up sheathing the broadsword and dropping it to the ground. Kopaka frowned.

"You're going to get yourself killed out there."

"Then I won't go out there."

A slight vibration rocked the ground, and I stumbled. The mini-quakes had become more frequent, which worried me. The Bohrok were probably coming soon.

"Is your sword too large?"

"Dunno. You tell me what you think."

Gali sighed off to the side, shaking her head. I turned to her.

"What?" I asked. She walked forward.

"First you're acting weird, then you run off only to come back and claim you wrote a note saying why you left, then Kopaka wipes the floor with you, and now you're saying you're not going to fight." She stated, crossing her arms. "What's really going on?" I held my breath. If she buys it, then I'm using it for everything.

"Nothing. I'm fine." I lied, shrugging slightly. _Please buy it—_

"Liar."

 _Crap._

"There's no way you're fine. After Ma-Ma. . ." She trailed off, and I sighed. Honestly!

"Just blurt it out anyway!" I snapped, leaning against a tree. "What, you think it'll happen again if you say what happened? Really? Go ahead, say it—"

"When we destroyed Makuta, he collapsed the cave. A piece of rubble was about to kill me, when you shoved me away." Kopaka interjected, looking solemn. I was instantly reminded of how _I_ died, and a tear came to my eye. "It crushed you instead, killing you instantly. Your heartlight was dark."

"Brother, it did not _kill_ him. It merely injured him. As you can see, he is alive and well in front of us." Gali corrected him, and I bit my lip. If I was here after I died, then Tahu was probably not alive. Or we pulled a switcheroo and he's in my body. God, that'd be embarrassing. Imagine how he'd act in school. DMC on the spot.

"Maybe. Or was it something else?" Kopaka stated, walking to me, and I gulped. "Did you really survive in the cave? Or did somebody bring you back?" While he was saying that, he grabbed my hand and shoved something into it before closing my fist. I shrugged.

"I don't know. All I remember is dying, darkness, then I woke up and everything hurt." I said. Okay, that technically wasn't a lie. That _was_ what I felt. Kopaka nodded, satisfied with my answer, and I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding. Luckily, nobody noticed. Gali cleared her throat.

"Well, I believe I'll leave you two to train. I must be off to Ga-Koro, brothers. Take care." She said, before walking away. I waved bye, before sighing and unwrapping whatever note Kopaka gave me, and blanched.

No.

 _No._

 _NO!_

 **(POV Switch)**

A rumble echoed through the cave, disturbing the cocoons stored within. A golden hammer was stuck in a pedestal, shaking and bending. The tremors only grew as the hammer warped, cracks spreading across its surface.

The hammers shattered.

The tremors stopped.

Something stirred within.

 **End of Chapter 4:**

 **Not long either, just a snippet. What's Tahu so horrified about? What just awoke? How much does Kopaka really suspect?. . . I'll answer that later. Whoo, finally finished this!**


	5. Secrets Revealed

**Did I mention I created this chapter right after uploading chapter 4, but didn't start writing it until four days later? Oops. Well, onto the chapter! This chapter will obviously explain some things, as seen by the title. Also, I'm no longer using the 'center text' option. It keeps switching the entire story to being centered in the middle and I'm sick of fixing it every time I log back onto a chapter, even if I logged off five seconds ago to look something up for this chapter. I'm sick of it, frankly, and already filed a report. If they don't fix it, I'm going to have a cow. Anyway, onto the story!**

 **Chapter 5: Secrets Revealed**

Zoi Jailo smiled as she drew a picture of her new teina, thinking of her best friend. He promised to bring her back when he found her, and she knew he wouldn't fail. Over his dead body.

As she traced the crude, white drawing, a chill ran through her air, and she drew her finger back like she was burned as ice spread over the picture. She gasped as circles etched themselves in the ice, her bond with _him_ allowing her to read the foreign letters.

 _Your teina is in danger. They are coming._

 **(POV Switch)**

Takua ran through the forest, dashing for the cave where he stashed the chisel. Something was wrong. The earthquakes were only continuing. The chisel should've stopped them!

He dashed down the tunnel, lightstone in hand. Rumbling could be heard within, and he ran faster.

 _"Intruder. . ."_

He froze, staring at the glowing red eyes looking down upon him.

 _"Clean it. . . clean it all. . ."_

Takua screamed.

 **(POV Switch)**

Lewa listened as Ko-teina talked to Ta-teina, crouched behind a tree. Ta-teina was glaring at Kopaka, who said something back. Maybe they got into an argument again about who's stronger? Nothing to worry abou—

He froze, covering his mouth. W-what? Ta-teina. . . how could you. . . he had to tell the others! He had to warn the rest of his taina!

With a silent leap, he soared through the branches as quickly and quietly as possible, heading straight for his Koro.

Whatever happened to Ta-teina, he was going to save him.

 **(POV Switch)**

 _I know you're not Tahu._

I stared at the note, my hands shaking. How did he find out? Maybe it was a little obvious that 'Tahu' was acting weird, but not enough to outright say 'That's not him!' What did I do? What's he going to tell the others?

"Anything to say?" He retorted. I looked him in the eyes, knowing I was going to regret this.

"How did you find out?" I asked coldly. "How did you know I wasn't your brother and an imposter?" Was it just me, or did he. . . smirk?

"If you're who I think, then it makes sense you can read that note." He replied, stepping forward. "Do you know how _hard_ it is to write in your language? My hand got cramped last night." I traced the letters of the note again, and realized the note was in, albeit messy, English. How? Nobody wrote this language here. Everything was represented in circles and lines, not letters.

"How did you write this?" I practically snapped. "There's no way you know this. I've been here long enough to know that what everyone speaks and English are actually two different languages with the same dialect."

"I. . . _know_ someone who speaks and writes it." He answered. "I'll make you a deal; if I can guess your name in three guesses, then you'll tell me who you are and what you know and I'll tell you who my friend is. If not, we never had this conversation and I'll try my best to keep the others off your back." I glared at him.

"Deal. Guess away—"

"Erize Thuy-Nguyet Hanh. Am I right?"

My mouth fell open in shock before I glared at him, baring my teeth. I kept some of my features from my original body, my teeth and tongue being two of them. And I was _barely_ resisting the urge to just run up, sock him, and bite until I tasted blood out of frustration. God, I'm _really_ starting to hate him now.

"Who are you? There's no way you know my name. Everyone saw me die—"

"Including someone you saved, who's putting every bit of her trust in me to find you and keep you safe." He replied, full-on smirking now. "Nice to finally meet you, Erize—" I grabbed my broadsword laying on the ground and pointed it at his neck.

"Who told you my name? Who are you working with? What's this all about?! What do you want from me—"

"Zoi says hello, Erize."

I dropped the sword.

 _"Zoi! Behind you!"_

 _Zoi._

"You. . . you know my best friend?" I whimpered, tears welling in my eyes. "Zoi?" Kopaka nodded, stepping forward and wrapping an arm around me. I sniffled.

"Is. . . is she okay?" I asked, my voice cracking. "Please, did she. . . did she survive?"

"She survived, alright." He replied, nodding. "All thanks to you, Erize. You saved her life." I smiled, knowing I had done something.

Wiping the tears from my eyes, I picked up my sword, struggling to lift it again. Kopaka snickered.

"I'm. . . just. . . a human. . . from. . . Earth. . ." I wheezed, the sword lifting slightly. "I'm twelve. . . years. . . old. . . and. . . I. . . died. . . saving. . . Zoi Jailo's. . . life. . . at the. . . Ren. . . Fest. . . GOD DANG IT WHY IS THIS SWORD SO HEAVY?!?!" Kopaka chuckled, picking up the sword for me and placing it in its sheath. I hugged him.

"Thanks!" I said, smiling. "So, you wanted to know something?" Kopaka nodded.

"Do you know how to beat Makuta?" He asked. "Is he dead? What's with the earthquakes—"

"One question at a time, please." I muttered, giving him a deadpan look. "Makuta isn't dead. The earthquakes are the Bohrok coming to wipe the island clean of all creatures so Mata Nui can awaken. We defeat them, Mata Nui doesn't wake up and instead starts dying when we defeat Makuta and find Metru Nui, the island right below us. This whole entire island chain is simply Mata Nui's body, actually. So, I think we should just let them ravage the island while the Matoran make it down to Metru Nui and hide themselves in the Archives. Boom. Makuta possession crisis averted." Kopaka shook his head.

"No, that wouldn't work. You said that Mata Nui dies because we defeat Makuta, and you said something about a Makuta possessing something." He pointed. out.

"We defeat Makuta, he possesses Mata Nui." I replied, shrugging.

"But you said to get to this Metru Nui, we have to beat Makuta."

"But we can't or else he'll possess Mata Nui."

"Then how are we supposed to get to Metru Nui?!"

"It's called the nine or so airships the Toa Metru hid on this island, idiot!"

". . . What's an airship?"

"What do you mean what's an airship it's exactly as it sounds, a ship in the air!"

"Well, where do we find these airships if these Toa Metru hid then away?!"

"It's called we ask them ourselves!"

"How in Karzahni do we find them, then?! They're probably long dead by now!"

"THE TOA METRU ARE THE TURAGA, YOU DOOFUS!!"

Kopaka fell silent.

"WHAT, ARTAKHA NEVER TOLD YOU CRAP OR SOMETHING?! OF COURSE THEY'RE THE TOA METRU, A TURAGA IS A TOA WHO SACRIFICED THEIR POWER AFTER FULFILLING THEIR DESTINY—oh." I paled after realizing my error. "Nobody told you about Metru Nui, did they?" He shook his head, and I facepalmed.

"I. Am. An. _Idiot_." I muttered, sighing. Of course he wouldn't know! The Turaga never told him! They never told anyone until _after_ Takua beat Makuta! Crap! "Okay, scratch the timeline. I screwed up enough by just being here. When you get back, ask the Turaga about Metru Nui. Say you saw it in a dream or something. They'll more likely explain what it is to you than keep secrets from you. I'll do the same thing." Kopaka nodded.

". . . We're going to have to tell everyone sooner or later." He stated, hinting to my identity. "There's no way we can keep them in the dark if the Turaga explain Metru Nui to the rest of them." I groaned.

"I don't wanna tell them! They're gonna freak!" I stated, biting the lip of my mask. "Can we wait until after the whole Bohrok thing to admit it?" Kopaka nodded.

"I won't tell them if you're uncomfortable about it." He said, turning to walk off. "Meet back here tomorrow?" I chuckled.

"Yeah, if I can drag myself out of bed early enough." I joked. He grinned.

"Well, let's hope you do." He replied, walking off. "Hasta mañana."

"Hasta mañana—wait, did you just speak Spanish?!"

"The perks of being able to talk to Zoi!" He shouted back, smirking. I huffed.

"Lucky!"

"Ha!"

 **End of Chapter 5**

 **Yay, the plot shall now be torn apart! 8D. Yeah, Erize, there's no more waiting. Well, we now know who was in Kopaka's head in Chapter 3. Who's they? Who told Zoi her teina (brother) is in danger? Also, just to clarify:**

 **Teina—brother**

 **Taina—siblings**

 **Tuahine—sister**

 **That is all, bye! :)**


	6. Fall Apart

_**Trust is a fragile thing. Each piece, relying on one another for everything. Unstable, delicate, waiting to break like a glass pane hung by a fraying thread. Sometimes, this thread turns to iron, this glass turns to diamond, and this trust is now as strong as steel. It is now unbreakable.**_

 _ **But it takes time for trust to become unbreakable. It takes pain. It takes grief. It takes falling apart only for someone to piece you back together again sometimes.**_

 _ **Trust is a fragile thing.**_

 _ **The thread continues fraying.**_

 _ **What was once a warm flame has become cold with forgery. A forgery meaning no harm. A forgery not intended to intervene.**_

 _ **Nevertheless, the wind now blows in the wrong direction. Flame had repaired Wind's thread, everyone's thread.**_

 _ **What once repaired fraying threads now frays them again.**_

 ** _The forgery frays it._**

 ** _The thread snaps._**

 ** _The glass falls._**

 ** _It shatters._**

 ** _And oh so rarely, can it ever be fixed._**

 ** _Trust is a fragile thing._**

 **Chapter 6: Fall Apart**

". . . Are you sure?"

"Sure-positive, Turaga," Lewa replied, grasping his ax. "I heard him. The imposter admitted he wasn't Ta-teina. Ko-teina confronted him about it earlier." Turaga Matau nodded, turning to a Le-Matoran messenger.

"Send word to the other Koros at once!" He ordered. "Warn them about the mole in our ranks. Have them spread the message!" The messenger nodded before running out, calling for his Gukko Bird. Lewa frowned.

"Turaga, you dropped your treespeak." He stated. "Is something bad-wrong?" Turaga Matau sighed.

"I'm afraid so, Toa Lewa." He replied. "Nothing good can come from this."

 **(POV Switch)**

 _"Zoi! Behind you!" Turaga Vakama turned to see a strange organic creature with two dark weaves of strands flowing from its head and wire framing its eyes running towards another one with light brown strands tied back behind her head and wire also framing its eyes, a crack echoing through the air. The light brown one turned to see a tree toppling towards her, only to be shoved out the way by the dark one. . ._

 _And for the dark one to be crushed instead._

 _"ERIZE!"_

He jerked awake, the cries of a scream lingering behind. A voice echoed through his head, and he gasped.

 _"The ally of shadows is closer than you think."_

"An ally of shadows?" He murmured, getting out of bed. "What does the Great Spirit mean? Friend. . . or Foe?" A Matoran burst in, panting.

"Sir! There's a mole in our ranks!" He cried. Turaga Vakama swore.

"Who?" He asked, grabbing his staff. "Who dare betray us?" The Matoran whimpered.

"Sir, it-it's Toa Tahu!"

 **(POV Switch)**

Turaga Nokama stared at the note in front of her, struggling to translate it. It was the note Tahu had claimed to have written, which puzzled her. Maybe he was just doodling?

 _'No.'_ She told herself. _'My mask would work easily and show it was nothing more than a drawing if he was. The fact that it's trying to translate it is proof it's a language.'_

"Turaga Nokama!"

She turned to see Gali burst through the door, her hooks in hand. She sighed.

"What is it?" She snapped, annoyed she was interrupted. Gali choked back a sob.

"Tahu-Tahu's betrayed us!"

 **(POV Switch)**

Pohatu ran to the clearing Kopaka had said he was heading to, panting. He had to warn him. He had to stop 'Tahu'!

Hearing the telltale voice of his best friend and that traitor, he jumped into the clearing. . .

"Aah!"

"Erize!"

And delivered a solid kick to the traitor's face, breaking his red Hau clean in half. Growling, he summoned a boulder and launched it at him, but a solid torrent of ice blew it off course, and he turned to see Kopaka with his arm out, sword in hand.

"Kopaka! I almost had him!" Pohatu shouted, furious. "He was going to hurt—"

"She's not our enemy, god!" Kopaka hollered back, running between the two and fully arming himself. "We never told anyone! Who told you?!" Pohatu growled.

"Lewa wants to save Tahu—"

"Then you're a fool for listening! We don't know where he is! _She_ doesn't know where he is! All Erize wants is to not die again!"

A groan sounded from behind Kopaka, and the traitor got up, form flickering from red to silver and violet. Both turned to see Tahu get up, eyes having turned from amber to dark brown.

"Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow," Tahu whined in a high-pitched voice. "I feel like crap." Kopaka ran over, ditching his sword.

"Erize!" He cried, helping her up. "Are you okay? Please tell me you're okay, please-"

"Relax, I'm. . . I'm fine. . ." Tahu replied, voice clearly feminine. Pohatu growled.

"Who are you, traitor?!" He hollered, summoning a rock in his hand. "What have you done to my teina?! Why did you infiltrate our ranks?! What does Makuta want-"

"Can you shut the heck up?!" Tahu shouted, back. "Why does everyone instantly assume I'm with Mr. I-threw-a-temper-tantrum-that-put-my-brother-into-a-coma?! If I wanted you all dead, then Kopaka would've already died! I had every opportunity to kill him, but I didn't because he's my _friend_! Use your head, rocks-for-brains!" Pohatu clenched his fist.

 _'Should I believe him, and risk Kopaka's life?'_ He thought. _'Or should I capture him and risk him being innocent and have Kopaka mad at me?_

 _He won't be mad at me when I save his life, however.'_

"TRAITOR!" He shouted, rising a stone cage out of the ground and trapping Tahu inside. "I've already warned the others where I'm going! They should be here in a second!" True to his word, Onua and Lewa popped out of the trees, Gali accompanying them. Lewa grabbed his ax.

"Where is he?! Where's our teina?!" He shouted, walking forward. Tahu whimpered.

"I-I don't. . ."

"TELL US-"

"SHE DOESN'T KNOW WHERE TAHU IS!!" Kopaka shouted, shoving Lewa away from the stone cage. "YOU WANT INFORMATION?! I'LL TELL YOU, OKAY?! SHE'S JUST A KID WHO _DIED_ SAVING HER FRIEND THAT WOKE UP AS TAHU! SHE'S NOT WORKING FOR MAKUTA AT ALL! JESUS CHRIST!" Onua shoved him aside gently.

"I'm sorry, teina." He apologized. "But we can't risk it. She may not work for Makuta, but that doesn't mean she means no harm." Kopaka charged forward, but Pohatu grabbed him.

"Let me go! Let me go!" He shouted, kicking and screaming. "Leave her alone! Let her go!" Tahu yelped as Onua picked up the cage, falling to the side. "Erize!"

"Stop it, teina! He's not to be trusted!" Gali shouted, splashing him with water. "Clear your head-"

"Rahkshi-spawn! Teridax incarnates!" He cursed, shocking everyone. "I can't believe I called you taina! Especially you Gali, you-"

"Kopaka!" Tahu shouted.

"I could care less about what it means!" He hollered. "It suits her anyway!" Pohatu pulled him away as Onua and Lewa carried Tahu off. "No! Let her go! Let her go! Erize!"

"I'm sorry." Pohatu apologized, and with a swift hit, Kopaka was out cold. Surely he'd forgive him since he saved his life, right?

Right?

Deep in his gut however, he knew this was wrong.

 **End of Chapter 6:**

 **A/N: Poor Kopaka and Erize! They got caught! And yes, I looked up Matoran slurs. Rahkshi-spawn I think I got online, and Teridax incarnates just popped into my head when I was writing this. What he was about to call Gali was an English curse slur. . . which I'll leave to you to imagine. ;) Hope you liked it!**


	7. My Own Side

**I'm really sorry I haven't updated. I had an idea, but I didn't make sense, and then I wrote this, and then _writer's block_ decided to rear its ugly head. Anyway;**

 **DISCLAIMER: I do not own Bionicle. That's LEGO. I only own my OC's.**

 **Kinda forgot about that. Well, better to put up a disclaimer later than never!**

 **Chapter 7: My Own Side**

They slowly awoke, watching the Bohrok climb out of the cave. The tiny little Av-Matoran bowed before them, a Krana on its head.

"My queens," he started. "The Great Spirit demands that we cleanse this island. We must clean it. We must clean it all." Gahdok turned to her sister.

"We have been demanded such, little Av." She replied. "But we also have greater orders from the Great Spirit. Orders for you."

"The Great Spirit demands that you exterminate the imposter." Cahdok continued. "The one called 'Erize.' Your mission, the moment a Bohrok runs out of these caves, will be to find this 'Erize. . .' and cleanse her of life." Takua nodded.

"Cleanse her of life I shall, my queens." Takua replied, getting up. "Clean it all."

"It must be cleaned." The two queens replied simultaneously, before throwing back their heads and laughing maniacally. "Clean it all!" Takua cheered.

"It must be cleaned!"

 **(POV Switch)**

Kopaka jerked awake, grabbing his sword. He had to help her, he had to stop them, he promised Zoi!

"Teina, calm down!" Gali cried, grabbing him by the shoulder. Kopaka slapped his hand away, earning a surprised look, and growled.

"Where in _Karzahni_. Is Erize?"

 **(POV Switch)**

"I'm sorry."

I looked up at Onua, uncurling from my ball. He stood at the bars of my cell in Po-Koro, where my powers were pretty much moot against stones. I scoffed.

"Sorry for _what_." I deadpanned harshly. " _Imprisoning_ me here? _Trapping_ me? Oh, maybe _'protecting'_ your brother when he was trying to _protect_ _me_." I added finger quotes at 'protecting' to emphasize my point. "Spill. _What do you want from me_?"

"Can't you tell?" Onua asked, confused. "What does Lewa want? You off this island. What does Pohatu want? To protect his taina. What does Gali want? Peace. I just want to apologize." I laughed bitterly.

"That's _it_?" I asked, before scowling. "Don't lie to me. Nobody apologizes unless they have something to gain from the other. Friends. Money. Popularity. Good grades. And when they're done using them, they show their true colors and cast them aside, shoving them into the trash. You're not fooling me. You _want_ something. Something you can use." Onua shook his head.

"No." He replied, before (to my surprise) unlocking the cell door and walking in. "I want forgiveness. I _want_ to say I'm sorry." I chucked a rock at him, hitting him in the shoulder, and he flinched.

"You know what I was trying to do?" I growled quietly, but loud enough for him to hear. "I was trying to help. We were trying to find a way to make a plan to save everyone here. You know what would've change if it had worked?

"We'd be in Metru Nui. Onu-Koro won't be destroyed by the Rahkshi. Ta-Koro won't sink in its own lake of lava. Lewa won't get controlled by the Bohrok. Mata Nui won't start _dying_.

"Yeah, Makuta will be alive. Let him be. If he comes to us, trap him in crystallized protodermis like the Toa Metru did."

"Who're the Toa Metru?" Onua asked. My eyes widened.

Oops.

 **(POV Switch)**

"What do we do with her? This isn't a situation like the Hordika." Turaga Matau stated, Turaga Vakama flinching slightly. "We don't know her. We can't just convince her to stop working for whoever she's working for."

"We don't." Turaga Onewa said. "We banish her. She's corrupted one of our best Toa and hidden, maybe killed the other. We can't risk it. She probably headed to Makuta during her walk and lied about the note." Turaga Nokama brought her hand up from under the table, revealing a paper with scribbles on it.

"No." She started, gasping. "She didn't lie about the note, it's right here! It's in a different language! 'Going for a walk. Need to clear my head. Erize.'" Turaga Vakama's eyes widened.

"Erize?" He asked. "I had a vision of two organic creatures, one dying. The one who survived yelled 'Erize.' The one who died, Erize, died saving the other, calling her. . . 'Zoi.'" When I woke up, a voice said 'The ally of shadows is closer than you think.'"

"Friend or foe?" Nuju asked as Matoro translated. Vakama shook his head.

"I. . . don't know." He replied. Whenua nodded.

"I say we keep her there. She can't hurt us unless someone sets her free. If she's an ally of Makuta, she'll talk to him sometime. Have Onua or Pohatu stand guard." Vakama nodded.

"That concludes it. We'll keep her there and have those two guard." He stated. "End of meeting."

 **(POV Switch)**

"Makuta!"

"Pohatu, get the others!"

I yawned, rubbing the back of my neck as I rolled over, laying on my arm. A chuckled was heard, and I moaned in annoyance, my foot lashing out where the source might've been.

"Come. . . Come, little shadow. . ."

I grumbled and shifted, drifting off.

"Come on. . . join me. . ."

 _Let me sleep. . ._ I thought, ignoring it.

"Little shadow—"

"Leave me alone. . ." I muttered, shifting myself away from the voice. It groaned, and something coiled around my leg.

I snapped awake.

A black and red shadow stared back at me.

I screamed.

" _GET YOUR FREAKY TENTACLE AWAY FROM ME, WHAT ARE YOU DOING_!?!" I shrieked, scrambling away. It huffed, pulling on my leg, and I summoned a ball of fire and chucked it at the shadow. It bounced off the wall and he growled.

"You are testing my patience. . . come. . ." It said, and I stuck out my tongue at it.

"Bug off, I wanna sleep!" I snapped, laying back down, only for him to start pulling on my leg harshly. "Ow! Okay, I'm awake, now _what do you want from me_?!"

"You know what I want." It said, gesturing to a black hole. _A portal?_ I wondered. "Come, my warrior, we have much to discuss." I stared at him, confused.

". . . Sir. Do you need help?" I asked, annoyed. "Because I don't know why you're referring to me like I'm your weapon or some crazy thing like that. No, I'm not coming with you. Get out of my cell. _Don't come back._ " The shadow groaned.

"Little shadow—"

" _No._ You heard me. Get out of my cell. _Don't. Come. Back._ " I snapped, whacking its tentacle as it unwound from around my leg. Just then, Pohatu and Onewa— _Turaga_ Onewa—burst in, and Pohatu blasted a torrent of sand into the cell, hitting both of us.

" _Ack!—Pleh!_ " I hacked, spitting sand out of my mouth. " _What the heck_?! Watch where you aim, sand-boy!" I heard Onua talking in the background, followed with a groan, and the sand settled. The shadow was gone. I sighed in relief.

"You work with him!" Pohatu growled as I turned to him. "Makuta-servant!"

"Teina, she just told Makuta off! She's not working with him!" Onua protested, catching me off guard. "There's no way she is!"

"She _is_ working with him, and now she's corrupted _you_!"

"No she hasn't! She is on our side!"

"She isn't!"

The two argued on and on, and I rolled my eyes, turning to Onewa and shrugging. He backed away. After a few minutes of sqabbling, I finally stood up.

"Alright, enough. Break it up." I stated. Neither stopped.

"Break it up!"

They only shouted louder.

"HEY, BREAK IT UP AND _SHUT YOUR TRAPS_!!"

 _That_ got their attention. I sighed.

"Both of you are right. Yeah, I'm not on Makuta's side. But neither am I on yours." I stated, crossing my arms. "I'm on the side trying to keep everyone safe, stay alive, and get home. You want the whole story? Get me to the other Turaga and Kopaka." Turaga Onewa shook his head.

"I refuse! You're not on our side!" He said, taking another step back. I scoffed.

"Okay. Guess the Bohrok can just ravage all the villages and nobody's able to stop them because I'm in this cell, sitting on the stone floor, rotting away. And last time I checked, I'm the leader. What does a team do without its leader? It falls apart." Onewa was paler now. "Didn't ya know? I did."

"Know what?" Pohatu asked. I smirked vindictively.

"The swarm's awakening. The Bohrok swarms."

 **End of Chapter 7**

 **A/N: Erize is normally very cuddly, quiet, and nice. . . until you tick her off. Then comes out a very vindictive, ruthless, sarcastic girl who doesn't regret any cruel word she says.**


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